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Chapter 420: Chapter 240: A New Exotic Insect?

He paid Bo Taixing’s coldness no mind.

Now that they were all on the same side, a bit of animosity was nothing to worry about.

"Is the fourth-tier Ice Ape dealt with?" Gu Zheng asked Sen Taibai, not getting involved in the conflict between Gorons and Bo Taixing.

"My Lord, that fourth-tier Ice Ape shattered on its own," Sen Taibai replied, glancing at Gorons.

"Once the ball of Death Qi was depleted, the fourth-tier Ice Ape it was propping up would collapse and die on its own," Gorons explained succinctly.

Gu Zheng nodded in understanding.

Simply put, the fourth-tier Ice Ape was just a temporary Puppet created by Gorons and his accomplice to draw attention and buy them some time.

Once Gorons’ accomplice died, the fourth-tier Ice Ape went out of control and began to split apart. All it took was a little prodding from Sen Taibai and Bo Taixing for it to collapse and shatter completely.

After hearing the explanation, Sen Taibai and Bo Taixing were both silent.

...

The attack ended with one Undead Race Great Monarch dead and the other having surrendered.

All in all, it was a good outcome.

No one from the four Alien Races—the Two-Eared, Three-Eyed, Toothless, or Hidden Spirit—had died.

As for the Undead Race Great Monarch suddenly becoming one of their own, some were resistant, some were indifferent, and others were quite enthusiastic.

The people of the Hidden Spirit Race, for instance, were quite happy to converse with Gorons.

The Undead Race could control Death Qi and convert it into life force. The Hidden Spirit Race, on the other hand, was naturally born with a Unity of Spirit and Body, making them invisible to the naked eye. They had always been studying their own nature, so they were very curious about the creation and composition of the Undead Race.

Once they started talking, both sides found the other very interesting.

Demon Fiends similar to the Hidden Spirit Race also existed in the Demon Realm, but their potential was limited. They couldn’t break through to the King’s Body as quickly.

Gu Zheng was also very curious about this.

According to Ji Taihao, they were naturally adept at connecting with nature and comprehending the Great Dao.

They faced almost no bottlenecks when breaking through to new realms.

They had been plagued by the Cold Poison before, but now that it was under control and could be purged daily, that was no longer an issue.

As long as they had a clear path forward, the True Body Realm was within their grasp.

But with these advantages came natural disadvantages.

Namely, the birth of a Hidden Spirit Race member was extremely difficult.

A Hidden Spirit Race couple might try for twenty years just to conceive—and even then, conception was only the first step.

Whether the child could be born safely was another problem entirely.

And after birth, surviving the first year was yet another hurdle.

The Cold Poison was just the last in a long line of challenges.

These problems were why the Hidden Spirit Race’s population had never surpassed twenty members in all these years.

Unlike the Two-Eared, Toothless, and Three-Eyed Races, they couldn’t even interbreed with other races.

Though the resulting child would only inherit the traits of one of the parent races, it was at least another avenue for reproduction.

The Hidden Spirit Race was essentially limited to procreating with close relatives.

Of course, they also had the longest lifespans.

Like every Hidden Spirit Race Leader before him, Ji Taihao wanted to solve his people’s problems.

But for so many years, there had been no progress.

Perhaps Gorons’s help could solve some of their issues.

...

With the potential threat of the Undead Race Great Monarch gone, the members of the four Alien Races, including the Two-Eared and Three-Eyed, no longer had to travel in large groups when they went out.

Those in the Heroic Body Realm could now search for Ice Dragon Fruit on their own.

The appearance of Ice Dragon Fruit was circumstantial; unlike Cold Liquid Vegetable, it couldn’t be cultivated.

This plant, which looked like a head of cabbage, was the staple food for all four Alien Races, including the Two-Eared and Three-Eyed Races.

Each vegetable garden had a dedicated guard.

The gardens were cultivated deep within their residential caves, in a specially selected environment.

For the longest time, there had been no major incidents.

But in the past half-month, the garden guards discovered that an insect was eating the Cold Liquid Vegetables!

There were bite marks all over the leaves, and it had burrowed inside, carving out several tunnels to absorb the essence at the very core.

The guards tried to capture it, but they could never catch it.

The insect was too fast.

Moreover, when it fled, it would vanish directly into the void, leaving no trace behind.

The Cold Liquid Vegetable was the Alien Races’ primary food source. Without it, they wouldn’t survive for long.

After all, not every member of the race was a Clan Leader.

So, the news of the insect infestation in the gardens was immediately reported up the chain of command.

At first, only the Three-Eyed Race’s garden was affected. Soon, the gardens of the Two-Eared, Toothless, and Hidden Spirit Races were hit as well.

After lying in wait, they discovered that the insect plaguing the gardens of all four races was actually the very same one!

Gu Zheng was the last to hear the news.

Upon learning of it, he immediately headed for the gardens.

’An insect that can escape into the void?’

’It has to be an Exotic Insect!’

’As long as it’s an Exotic Insect, there’s a chance I can subdue it.’

"Why didn’t you say so earlier?"

Gu Zheng barked as he walked briskly through the Two-Eared Race’s territory toward their garden.

"..."

Sen Taibai lowered his head, saying guiltily, "Forgive me, my Lord. We didn’t want to bother you with such a trivial matter..."

"How is something concerning everyone’s food supply a trivial matter?" Gu Zheng snapped.

The four Alien Races were his subordinates now. The death of even one of them was not a small matter.

The Cold Liquid Vegetable was their staple food. If the supply was reduced or completely destroyed, deaths would be inevitable.

Gu Zheng had some food and drink with him, but his supplies were limited.

They were trapped in the Ice Prison, and there was no telling how long they’d be stuck there.

For that reason, a food crisis was absolutely unacceptable!

"..." Sen Taibai lowered his head.

Gu Zheng didn’t bother scolding him further and quickened his pace to the garden.

In the vast underground space, rows upon rows of cabbage-like Cold Liquid Vegetables were growing.

Originally, the ice-blue heads of Cold Liquid Vegetable were arranged in neat rows, a sight that was particularly pleasing to the eye.

But now, almost half of them were riddled with bite marks.

Two of the Cold Liquid Vegetables were even eighty percent gone.

And this was the garden in the best condition among all four Alien Races.

The gardens in the other three territories had been ravaged even more severely.

This was precisely why Gu Zheng had rushed here.

’The insect is more likely to show up again in a garden that’s less damaged!’

"My Lord."

"Greetings, my Lord!"

"..."

When Gu Zheng arrived, the twenty-some Two-Ear Race People guarding the garden hurriedly bowed and called out in greeting.

"Mm."

Gu Zheng nodded and ordered, "All of you, leave. I’ll stand guard here myself."

"Huh?"

Sen Taibai was taken aback and blurted out, "That’s not appropriate, my Lord. How about I..."

"You too. Leave."

Gu Zheng cut him off. "Has your standing guard here been of any use?"

Sen Taibai, "..."

The other Two-Ear Race People, "..."

Every one of them lowered their heads in shame.

"All of you, go."

Not wanting to crush their spirits further, Gu Zheng waved a hand. "I’ll take over from here."

"...Yes!"

Sen Taibai respectfully accepted the command.

He led the others and quietly left the garden.

They didn’t go far, however. Most of them stood guard in a nearby corridor, just in case.

Gu Zheng sensed them but paid them no mind.

He began to walk slowly through the garden, weaving between the heads of Cold Liquid Vegetable.

’I don’t know the insect’s origin, and I can’t track it.’

’The only thing I can do is the stupid method of lying in wait for it.’

One day, two days, three days...

Gu Zheng remained in the garden by himself for five straight days.

During those five days, the insect would occasionally visit the other gardens, driving the members of the Three-Eyed, Toothless, and Hidden Spirit Races to distraction.

But there was no activity at the Two-Eared Race’s garden.

Gu Zheng received the reports but didn’t move.

’Chasing it back and forth would require too much luck.’

’It’s better to just stake out one location.’

The Two-Eared Race’s garden had the largest number of intact Cold Liquid Vegetables.

’I refuse to believe the insect won’t come here!’

Sure enough.

On the evening of the fifth day, as Gu Zheng concealed his aura and patrolled between the rows of Cold Liquid Vegetables, he suddenly sensed a disturbance in the void several tens of meters behind him.

He didn’t turn around. He didn’t make a move.

He kept walking slowly, just as before.

He waited until he "saw" an insect—as thick as a finger and five or six centimeters long, with a strangely familiar appearance—emerge from the void. It landed on a pristine Cold Liquid Vegetable, effortlessly bit into its outer layer, and began to burrow inside. Only then did Gu Zheng’s figure blur, crossing several tens of meters in an instant to appear right next to the vegetable.

BZZZT—!

The void shuddered.

An invisible Force Field was just about to manifest, but it suddenly vanished.

The corners of Gu Zheng’s mouth curled upward.

"Hahaha!"